Launched with the United States in March 1962, the goal of the operation was to "clear the VC from an area 40 miles northwest of Saigon" according to contemporary U.S. government documents.

[2][3] As part of the broader Hearts and Minds campaign the operation failed to have the desired impact.

Despite the success in lowering the numbers of VC in the area, the local citizens were opposed to being removed from their ancestral lands.

[7] South Vietnamese President Ngo Dinh Diem proceeded to sanction bombing raids on suspected VC-controlled hamlets.

Although dozens of VC were killed, popularity fell as a result of the number of civilian casualties.